Libertarian Party Opposes U.S. Intervention in Syria

Libertarian Party Chair Geoffrey J. Neale today strongly opposed any U.S. military intervention in the civil war in Syria.

“There is no Constitutional justification for America to unilaterally use force in Syria,” Neale said.

“Syria is not threatening our country,” he added. “We have no national interest in intervening there. There are no reasons for the U.S. to support either the Assad dictatorship or the opposition warlords.”

“It’s sadly ironic, and disturbing, that just as we’re commemorating the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King and the March on Washington, a milestone event and triumph of non-violent protest, President Obama is about to add to his record as the Nobel Peace price winner who has bombed the most countries,” said Libertarian Party of North Carolina communications director Brian Irving.

“There is no legal, Constitutional, moral — or even military — justification for bombing a country for ‘humanitarian’ reasons,” he said. “American aggression will not save and single life, in fact, it will probably result in the killing of more innocents, and will only make a bad situation worse.”

Neale reaffirmed the party’s longstanding foreign policy of nonintervention, quoting part of the National Defense plank of the party platform: “The United States should both avoid entangling alliances and abandon its attempts to act as policeman for the world.”

He also quoted from the International Affairs plank, which says, “American foreign policy should seek an America at peace with the world. Our foreign policy should emphasize defense against attack from abroad and enhance the likelihood of peace by avoiding foreign entanglements. We would end the current U.S. government policy of foreign intervention, including military and economic aid.”

More libertarian views on Syria

The Future of Freedom Foundation – Jacob Hornberger

Cato Institute: U.S. Can’t Fix Syria

Support is gathering in Washington for military action in Syria. The desire to do something in Syria is understandable. The gut-wrenching images of the dead, including the young, have rocketed around the world. To casual observers, it seems obvious that a country as rich and militarily powerful as the United States must be able to stop the violence.

But the truth is that not even the United States can solve Syria’s problems. Cato scholars Benjamin Friedman and Christopher A. Preble discuss the recent violence in Syria and the role of the United States.